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Israel/Occupied Territories

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Background: Following World War II, the British withdrew from their mandate of Palestine, and the UN partitioned the area into Arab and Jewish states, an arrangement rejected by the Arabs. Subsequently, the Israelis defeated the Arabs in a series of wars without ending the deep tensions between the two sides. The territories Israel occupied since the 1967 war are not included in the Israel country profile, unless otherwise noted. On 25 April 1982, Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty. In keeping with the framework established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991, bilateral negotiations were conducted between Israel and Palestinian representatives and Syria to achieve a permanent settlement. Israel and Palestinian officials signed on 13 September 1993 a Declaration of Principles (also known as the "Oslo Accords") guiding an interim period of Palestinian self-rule. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace. In addition, on 25 May 2000, Israel withdrew unilaterally from southern Lebanon, which it had occupied since 1982. In April 2003, US President BUSH, working in conjunction with the EU, UN, and Russia - the "Quartet" - took the lead in laying out a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005, based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. However, progress toward a permanent status agreement was undermined by Israeli-Palestinian violence between September 2003 and February 2005. In the summer of 2005, Israel unilaterally disengaged from the Gaza Strip, evacuating settlers and its military while retaining control over most points of entry into the Gaza Strip. The election of HAMAS to head the Palestinian Legislative Council froze relations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA). Ehud OLMERT became prime minister in March 2006 and presided over a 34-day conflict with Hizballah in Lebanon in June-August 2006 and a 23-day conflict with HAMAS in the Gaza Strip during December 2008 and January 2009. OLMERT, who in June 2007 resumed talks with PA President Mahmoud ABBAS, resigned in September 2008. Prime Minister Binyamin NETANYAHU formed a coalition in March 2009 following a February 2009 general election. Direct talks launched in September 2010 collapsed following the expiration of Israel's 10-month partial settlement construction moratorium in the West Bank. Diplomatic initiatives to revive the negotiations through proximity talks began at the end of 2010.Location: Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and LebanonArea land: 20,330 sq kmArea water: 440 sq kmCoastline: 273 kmCountry name conventional long form: State of IsraelCountry name conventional short form: IsraelCountry name former: State of IsraelPopulation: 7,473,052 (July 2010 est.)Age structure: 0-14 years: 27.6% (male 1,057,113/female 1,008,978); 15-64 years: 62.2% (male 2,358,858/female 2,292,281); 65 years and over: 10.1% (male 331,034/female 424,788) (2011 est.);Population growth rate: 1.584% (2011 est.)Birth rate: 19.24 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)Death rate: 5.47 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)Net migration rate: 2.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female; under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female; total population: 1 male(s)/female (2011 est.);Infant mortality rate: total: 4.12 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 4.3 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 3.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.);Life expectancy at birth: total population: 80.96 years; male: 78.79 years; female: 83.24 years (2011 est.);Total fertility rate: 2.7 children born/woman (2011 est.);HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.2% (2009 est.);HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 7,500 (2009 est.);HIV/AIDS - deaths: fewer than 100 (2009 est.);Nationality: noun: Israeli(s); adjective: Israeli;Ethnic groups: Jewish 76.4% (of which Israel-born 67.1%, Europe/America-born 22.6%, Africa-born 5.9%, Asia-born 4.2%), non-Jewish 23.6% (mostly Arab) (2004);Religions: Jewish 75.5%, Muslim 16.8%, Christian 2.1%, Druze 1.7%, other 3.9% (2008);Languages: Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language;Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write; total population: 97.1%; male: 98.5%; female: 95.9% (2004 est.);GDP (purchasing power parity): $217.1 billion (2010 est.); $210 billion (2009 est.); $209.6 billion (2008 est.);

The majority of politicians, including the “dovish” labor party, imbue the teaching that the Palestinians of 1948 left on their own behalf, rather than by forceful displacement or fleeing for safety. The denial of transfer within the Israeli leadership perpetuates the indoctrination of falsities in Israeli society.

This was the first time that Bush explicitly stated that the status of Jerusalem was to be determined through negotiations … The shift in Bush’s rhetoric on May 26 was breathtaking — he was rolling back the pledges that he had made to Ariel Sharon just one year before.